You know.. The crisp flavour competition?

I've finally 'collected the set' and 'caught them all', and having given into the marketing scam i bring you my thoughts so you dont have to. though, you still can if you want. I've got a few minutes spare (ok ive got forever but this shouldnt take long) so i'll go ahead with the details of my inner most thinking:


Cajun Squirrel- straight from the title you know half the flavours here are bogus. I'm sure some people have tried squirrel, probably with cajun seasoning, but i seriously doubt most people have. I haven't, so i don't know what flavour i'm meant to be looking for. After we tried them in a pub, established it just tasted like basic Cajun seasoning, i actually reckon theres no 'meat' flavouring involved whatsoever. Its just Cajun. Either way, a bit dissappointing really, and if it wins it'll just be its gimmicky title, which is a bit sad really.

Onion Bhaji- long ago in year 11 at high school i used to have crisps everyday. My favourite flavour then was roast chicken but i would also get curry a lot too. The fact that eating these crisps brought back strong memories of those.. horrible, claustrophic high school years is a good indication they must be using the same flavourings, only with a lot more onion in. Actually they taste a bit like curry mixed with cheese 'n' onion. I do like onion bhajis- preferably the next day with mint sauce- but with these crisps im not a fan, and furthermore too similar to crisp flavours you can already get.

Fish n Chips- Let me make the point i dont even like fish n chips. I was really impressed with these crisps.. really impressed! If you asked me to describe the flavour of battered fish, i couldnt really tell you.. i mean 'greasy' isnt really a flavour, is it? and batter is hardly distinctly tasting, and fresh cooked fish itself even less so. but it tasted richly of all these things.. and not in a bad way either! I felt compelled to order saveloy with it !

Chilli n Chocolate- obviously a lot of people are a bit freaked out by this one. Cocoa and chillies have been blended together by the Aztecs long before the Europeans tried it with milk, or cheap vegetable fat/ margarine in cadbury's case. I've had it before and it's pretty nice, it is to chocolate what gingerbread is to cookies.. the sweet and hot version. So i had no worries with trying this out.. but these crisps dont taste sweet or cocoaey at all, they just taste like.. chilli. Which is alright if you just want chilli i suppose, but then why not buy the thai chilli flavour instead or something? So.. a dissappointment.

Builders Breakfast- another one i was pleasantly surprised by. The first taste just tasted like smokey bacon -an all time favourite, so not a bad thing- but i was kinda hoping for something more builders breakfasty than that. After a few i got used to the bacon taste and it just tasted really strongly of sausage, and then egg.. again, not something i'd really thought of as having a flavour. Then i could taste ketchup too! perhaps the crisps are just lots of different flavours in the same bag? That would be cool.. like something out of Willy Wonka. Good show, guys! My only issue with it, if any, as a winner is the fact that it's still a load of flavours they already have..

Hoi Sin Crispy Duck- you cant go wrong with hoi sin duck can you really. Well.. maybe i was getting my hopes up, but these crisps tasted way too crude. They don't quite taste sweet enough, or meaty and crisped enough. perhaps hoi sin duck is just all about the texture. My dad tried some, and he concluded they tasted too chemically and artificial. I agree.. quite acceptable, but not as special as you'd hope.



Personal preference to win: I'd be happy with Hoi Sin Duck or Builders Breakfast, but.. If you can make me love a packet of crisps flavoured with something i don't even like, you're doing bloody good- Fish 'n' Chips to win!